Little Man

The first tooth popped through this morning. Another step toward manhood. Tomorrow his voice will be cracking.

The first tooth is always exciting. We found it at the breakfast table, and everyone cheered. But it brought another gift.

Ding, ding, ding. Tell him what else he's won... a wake you screaming diaper rash!

Which is what led to this humiliating moment...

I couldn't stop the hashtags forming in my brain during this bath. Nibble, nibble like a mouse - Who is nibbling on my house?

Why am I washing my son in a roasting pan?!! Dirty dishes. Oatmeal soak. One time, I tried an oatmeal bath in the tub. One time. and decided never again. What a mess. Hence the roasting pan soak and why I'm not winning the parent of the year award.

P.S. ~ Don't you love how he decided to flex his muscle and guard his modesty at the same time?

Weeks ago now, I promised a post for Brother Bear. And I started it. Right after his belated 6 month check up. The check up that looked something like this:

Pediatrician perusing the front page of the growth chart, "25th percentile height, okay. 25th percentile weight." Flip the chart over, "Whoa!! Head's in the 95th! What's with your kids being very smart elves?"

So... How go things for the little man?

Although I haven't posted as many pics of him, he's not the forgotten third child. At least not as much as I feared. I envisioned Mowgli scrounging through cabinets for baby food samples. Or me so distracted that I missed all his big moments - hey, when did you teach yourself to read? Fortunately, it's nothing like that. We have sweet time together. We just don't have extra time or hands to recreate the scene for a photograph.

His childhood is slightly less documented, but not less rich. Instead, he has been worn along and exposed to all sorts of wonderful stuff... photography exhibit and lecture, glass blowing display, pony hunt on Shackleford Island, the body exhibit. The girls did none of this stuff. His wedding slide show might be shorter, but it won't reflect neglect.

What is Carrick up to? 

All the usual 6, almost 7 month stuff. He babbles and grabs and sits for short periods before his oversized noggin overpowers his balance. And teethes. on. everything. He's started the backwards inchworm, the precursor to crawling. The girls have no idea what they're in for when he starts crawling. Come to think of it, their momma is pretty spoiled by kids old enough to recognize that a pin shouldn't be eaten.

Blue Steel

Watching the sisters play

He's the happiest critter you'll ever meet. Smiles for everyone all the time. He guffaws and snorts and yuks, especially at Afton {they share an understanding beyond the rest of the family}. He flirts with everyone at church. He delights in hearing other people laugh and keeps up the clowning as long as we laugh with him. In short, the only other person I know who is this friendly and smiles so easily is his G'pa {Tim's dad}, which I suppose is where he got it {my side tends to produce Eeyores.}

How is life with three?

Wonderful. and hectic. and overwhelming. and hysterical. More than ever, T and I sit back and shake our heads that we should be so blessed. And more than ever, we bang our heads against a wall. I didn't comprehend how much more organized I must be. Slowly, I'm trying to implement routine to my duties, so I make time for intentional school {we've resembled an unschooling family, which isn't my style}, to create, and to write. The hardest part is recognizing my time limitations. With three, I'm interrupted that much more. My windows of free time have significantly shrunk unless I use Disney to babysit while I sew. In short, we're still transitioning. Probably will be for a while yet. But it is a blessed transforming.